Recent Reads in September

 

Schulz – The Street of Crocodiles

 

The thing about Schulz is that he is great at making atmosphere. It reminds me of something from Kafka or Thomas Mann. I’m not sure if it is just a thing from time and place or something else.

 

The problem is that the thing with plot or character goes lacking where the whole thing seems to be the weather hanging over this mid-war black sea community. So, in all the stories it felt like something was wanting.

 

Rodney – Decolonial Marxism

 

I recently made it through the text that made Rodney’s name, “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa,” and the bulk of these essays feel like the seed of that larger work. I sure have learned more about the African side of decolonialism through reading Rodney, but some of these essays are hit or miss – reading the text as a book started slow and didn’t pick up until the middle. This might be a question of the editing choices though.

 

Burmila – Chaotic Neutral

 

Burmila’s book is hard to read. It’s well written but it’s hard to read because as someone who doesn’t really identify with the Democrats, but hopes that they win over the other guys, a lot of the book is just a list of all the dumb things that the party has done over the years to marginalize themselves and not fight back against Republican selfishness.

 

For better or worse, he also eschews simple, pat answers at the end. It made me think of Selfa’s “ The Democrats: A Critical History” but snarkier. And you can feel that Burmila is a bit invested in the success of leftish electoralism and hasn’t fully given up.

 

Moore – Batman: The Killing Joke

 

I enjoyed this book – the art in the text is beautiful and well printed and looks clean and crisp printed in the hardcover. It’s worth holding on to. The story is interesting as well, with the Joker having some back-story and the end of the book closing on a hilarious joke. A worthwhile read for the evening.

 

 

Moore – Swamp Thing: Book Six

 

So, it feels that by the end of the arc, Moore started running out of ideas about what to do with the character. Thus, you end up with these books where Swamp Thing is making his way back home through space. The stories are more science fiction, more experimental, and less grounded than some of the other books in the series. I’m not 100% sure it works, but the entire arc ends up tying together well.